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Gender equality still a dream

The World’s Women 2015 study reveals some shocking facts about the plight of women that underline how far we are from a gender-equal world.

The World’s Women report, published every five years, based its recent findings on available data related to women and girls. It covers eight key areas like education, health, violence, population and families, work, power and decision-making, environment and poverty. It is a part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established by the UN, which state that gender equality and women’s empowerment need to be front and centre of efforts to combat poverty and tackle inequality and climate change by 2030.

Some of the disturbing findings in the report underline how far we are in achieving gender equality.

1) 496 million out of 781 million illiterate adults are women

2) 31 million primary aged girls are out of schools (from a total of 58 million such children).

3) 30 per cent of women and 19 per cent of men (over the age of 65) were found to be illiterate.

4) The total fertility rates have decreased from three children to an average of 2.5 between 1990-95 and 2010-15.

5) One in three women have been the victim of physical or sexual violence: around two-thirds of them faced violence or death at the hands of an intimate partner or family member.

6) 60 per cent of all women survivors did not report the crime or seek support. Those who did turned to family or friends rather than police.

7) One in three married women in poorer countries have no control over spending on major household purchases

8) One in 10 married women have no say over how the money they earned is spent.